University of Minnesota Institute on Infectious Diseases Announces New Director

The University of Minnesota is pleased to announce that Michael Gale Jr., PhD, will become director of the University of Minnesota Institute on Infectious Diseases (UMIID) head of the Medical School's Department of Microbiology and Immunology (DMI) on October 31, 2024. With remarkable expertise in immunology, virology and systems biology of infectious diseases, Dr. Gale will usher forward impacts of research supported by UMIID and the U of M for Minnesota and its regional and global neighbors.

Dr. Gale received his training in pathobiology at the University of Washington School of Public Health and Community Medicine. He then served on the faculty in the Department of Molecular Microbiology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center until joining the University of Washington in 2007. At UW, he founded and served as the director of the Center for Innate Immunity and Immune Disease (CIIID), as an Adjunct Professor of Global Health and Microbiology, and as an Affiliate Investigator of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. He also co-founded the UW Institute for Translational Immunology.

Dr. Gale's primary research focuses on revealing the innate immunity mechanisms of the body's response to infections caused by emerging RNA viruses, HIV and other microbial pathogens. His efforts are directed toward translational research aimed at enhancing vaccine efficacy, developing novel vaccine adjuvants, and creating effective antiviral and antimicrobial therapies. He has mentored and trained 42 scientists, all of whom are current leaders in academic, clinical and pharmaceutical research in the areas of infection and immunity.

Dr. Gale serves as one of the principal investigators of the Center for Research in Emerging Infectious Disease (CREID), also known as the United World Antiviral Research Network/UWARN. This center, part of the 10 CREID networks globally supported by the NIH, focuses on combating emerging viruses. Additionally, he held the position of Chief of the Infectious Disease and Translational Medicine unit at the Washington National Primate Research Center.

Among all cited microbiology researchers worldwide, Dr Gale has ranked in the top 1% cited for nearly a decade, as ranked by Thompson-Reuters, Clarivate, and Web of Science. He has received many honors and awards. In 2019, he received the UW School of Public Health Distinguished Alumni Award, the School’s highest honor, recognizing distinguished achievement and impact in public health.

As Dr. Gale steps into this new dual role, he takes the reigns from Regents Professor Ashley Haase, MD, who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership and contributions as head of DMI for nearly 40 years and was instrumental in establishing UMIID as a research institute in service to the state of Minnesota.